Flooring material having superior nonslip characteristics, and synthetic wood flooring using the same

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are a flooring material having excellent nonslip characteristics, and synthetic wood flooring using the same. The flooring material having excellent nonslip characteristics is made of synthetic wood, and includes grooves formed on an upper surface thereof in a longitudinal direction, and embossed patterns, which are similar to patterns of natural wood and formed between the grooves. The flooring material having excellent nonslip characteristics can be used alone or can be used together with a synthetic wood flooring material having embossed patterns or grooves, thereby providing nonslip characteristics and good design.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a flooring material, and moreparticularly, to a flooring material made of synthetic wood and havingexcellent nonslip characteristics, and synthetic wood flooring using thesame.

BACKGROUND ART

Generally, a flooring material used in a house, commercial space,landscape space, and the like has been manufactured using a syntheticresin. In a conventional method of manufacturing a flooring materialusing a synthetic resin, a plasticizer to facilitate processing andpigments are added together with other materials to a raw material, i.e.the synthetic resin, followed by blending and gelling.

After gelling, the raw material is spread in a plate shape and formed tohave a desired thickness through rolling, followed by a post-process toimpart physical properties. However, such a conventional method providesa limited surface effect to the flooring material.

Recently, instead of the synthetic resin, natural wood has been employedas a material for flooring materials in order to impart a feeling ofnatural texture to flooring. However, the flooring material based onnatural wood has disadvantages in that the wood rots and loses beautywhen left in the presence of moisture for a long period of time, therebylowering safety and quality of life.

In addition, flooring materials for ships, hospitals, kindergartens,public landscape spaces, and the like need nonslip characteristics forsafety and pleasant appearance.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

The present invention is directed to providing a flooring materialhaving a design effect, which appears to be made of natural wood, whileusing synthetic wood and providing excellent nonslip characteristics.

In addition, the present invention is directed to providing syntheticwood flooring, which is constructed using the flooring material alone,or together with other synthetic wood flooring materials, therebyimproving both design and nonslip characteristics.

Technical Solution

One aspect of the present invention provides a flooring material havingexcellent nonslip characteristics, which is made of synthetic wood andincludes grooves on an upper surface thereof in a longitudinal directionand an embossed pattern between the grooves. The embossed pattern maycorrespond to a pattern on natural wood.

Another aspect of the present invention provides synthetic woodflooring, which includes: a first flooring material made of syntheticwood and including grooves on an upper surface of the first flooringmaterial in a longitudinal direction thereof and an embossed patternbetween the grooves; and a second flooring material made of syntheticwood and including grooves on an upper surface of the second flooringmaterial in a longitudinal direction thereof, wherein the first flooringmaterial and the second flooring material are alternately arranged, andwherein each of the first flooring material and the second flooringmaterial includes joint grooves on both sides thereof in thelongitudinal direction such that the flooring materials neighboring in awidth direction can be harmoniously joined to each other withoutdifference in texture.

A further aspect of the present invention provides synthetic woodflooring, which includes: a first flooring material including grooves onan upper surface of the first flooring material in a longitudinaldirection thereof and an embossed pattern between the grooves; and athird flooring material including an embossed pattern on an uppersurface of the third flooring material in a longitudinal directionthereof, wherein the first flooring material and the third flooringmaterial are alternately arranged, and wherein each of the first andthird flooring materials includes joint grooves on both sides thereof inthe longitudinal direction so that the flooring materials neighboring ina width direction can be harmoniously joined to each other withoutdifference in texture.

Yet another aspect of the present invention provides synthetic woodflooring including: a first flooring material including grooves on anupper surface of the first flooring material in a longitudinal directionthereof and an embossed pattern between the grooves; a second flooringmaterial including grooves on an upper surface of the second flooringmaterial in a longitudinal direction thereof; and a third flooringmaterial including an embossed pattern on an upper surface of the thirdflooring material in a longitudinal direction thereof, wherein the firstflooring material, the second flooring material and the third flooringmaterial are alternately arranged, and wherein each of the firstflooring material, the second flooring material and the third flooringmaterial includes joint grooves on both sides thereof in thelongitudinal direction such that the flooring materials neighboring in awidth direction can be harmoniously joined to each other withoutdifference in texture.

Advantageous Effects

A flooring material having excellent nonslip characteristics accordingto the present invention is made of synthetic wood and includes groovesand an embossed pattern between the grooves, thereby providing improvednonslip characteristics.

Synthetic wood flooring according to the present invention isconstructed using combination of a flooring material having groovesalone and a flooring material having an embossed pattern alone, therebyproviding improved nonslip characteristics.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a flooring material having excellentnonslip characteristics according to one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the flooring material of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring in which theflooring materials of FIG. 1 are arranged.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a flooring material having groovesformed in a longitudinal direction according to another embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the flooring material of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring synthetic woodflooring in which a first flooring material and a second flooringmaterial are alternately arranged.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a flooring material having an embossedpattern formed in a longitudinal direction.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the flooring material of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring in which afirst flooring material and a third flooring material are alternatelyarranged.

FIG. 10 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring in which afirst flooring material, a second flooring material and a third flooringmaterial are alternately arranged.

FIGS. 11 to 14 illustrate flooring materials having excellent nonslipcharacteristics according to other embodiments of the present invention.

BEST MODE

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the inventionwill become apparent from the detailed description of the followingembodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should beunderstood that the present invention is not limited to the followingembodiments and may be embodied in different ways, and that theembodiments are given to provide complete disclosure of the inventionand to provide a thorough understanding of the invention to thoseskilled in the art. The scope of the invention is defined only by theclaims. Like components will be denoted by like reference numeralsthroughout the specification.

A flooring material having excellent nonslip characteristics accordingto one embodiment of the present invention and synthetic wood flooringusing the same will now be described in more detail with reference tothe accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a flooring material having excellentnonslip characteristics according to one embodiment of the presentinvention, and FIG. 2 is a front view of the flooring material of FIG.1.

Referring to FIG. 1, the flooring material 100 having excellent nonslipcharacteristics according to the embodiment of the present invention isformed with a plurality of grooves 110 on an upper surface thereof in alongitudinal direction. Further, an embossed pattern 120 is formedbetween the grooves 110.

Here, both the groove 110 and the embossed pattern 120 are provided in arecessed form. However, the groove 110 is more right-angled and deeperthan the embossed pattern 120.

The groove 110 may be formed in a straight line in the longitudinaldirection of the flooring material 100, and the embossed pattern 120 maybe formed in a curved line, as shown in FIG. 1, as well as a straightline.

As shown in FIGS. 11 to 14, the embossed pattern 120 may be formedcorresponding to a pattern of natural wood. In this case, a texture ofnatural wood may be imparted to the flooring material.

The groove 110 and the embossed pattern 120 provide nonslipcharacteristics through a plurality of grooves formed in thelongitudinal direction of the flooring material 100.

In addition, the flooring material 100 according to the presentembodiment is made of synthetic wood to provide a texture of naturalwood, and includes the embossed pattern 120 formed between the grooves110 to provide a design effect that appears to be made of natural wood.

According to the present invention, the synthetic wood for the flooringmaterial may be mainly made of wood flour and further include asynthetic resin.

The wood flour is obtained by pulverizing natural wood or the like, andserves to impart a texture of natural wood.

The synthetic resin acts as a binder. The synthetic resin may include atleast one selected from the group consisting of polypropylene (PP),polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC),polyethylene terephthalate (PET), poly lactic acid (PLA), and mixturesthereof.

In manufacture of the synthetic wood, the synthetic resin may be addedin an amount of 20 to 50 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight ofthe wood flour. If the amount of the synthetic resin exceeds 50 parts byweight based on 100 parts by weight of the wood flour, the effect ofproviding a texture of natural wood can be deteriorated. On the otherhand, if the amount of the synthetic resin is less than 20 parts byweight, compatibility with other components can be deteriorated

Also, the flooring material 100 is formed with joint grooves 130 at bothsides thereof in the longitudinal direction such that the flooringmaterials neighboring in a width direction are joined to each other viathe joint grooves via the joint grooves.

At a portion where the adjacent flooring materials contact each other,the joint grooves 130 may form a hole into which a clip or other jointmember can be inserted.

FIG. 3 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring in which theflooring materials of FIG. 1 are arranged.

Referring to FIG. 3, the synthetic wood flooring may be constructed bysuccessively arranging the flooring materials 100, each of which has thegrooves 110 and the embossed pattern 120.

The constructed synthetic wood flooring has improved nonslipcharacteristics through the flooring materials 100 including the grooves110 and the embossed pattern 120. Also, the embossed pattern and thewood flour contained in the flooring material of the synthetic woodprovide an excellent effect of imparting natural texture.

Further, the synthetic wood floor may be constructed by combination ofthe flooring material as shown in FIG. 1 and a flooring material havinga different shape.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show one example of a flooring material which can be usedtogether with the flooring material of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a perspectiveview of a flooring material having grooves formed in a longitudinaldirection according to another embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 5 is a front view of the flooring material of FIG. 4.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the flooring material 400 is formed withgrooves alone.

The flooring material 400 of FIG. 4 (hereinafter, referred to as asecond flooring material) is formed with grooves 110 alone and thus hasinferior nonslip characteristics to the flooring material 100 of FIG. 1(hereinafter, referred to as a first flooring material). However, thesecond flooring material 400 also exhibits nonslip characteristicsthrough the grooves 110. Thus, the second flooring material 400 made ofsynthetic wood can also be harmoniously joined together with the firstflooring material 100 without difference in texture.

FIG. 6 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring in which afirst flooring material and a second flooring material are alternatelyarranged.

Referring to FIG. 6, the first flooring material 100 and the secondflooring material 400 may be used together in construction of flooring.

The first flooring material 100 is made of synthetic wood and formedwith grooves 110 on an upper surface thereof in a longitudinaldirection, and an embossed pattern 120 between the grooves 110.

The second flooring material 400 is made of synthetic wood as in thefirst flooring material. However, the second flooring material 400 isformed with grooves on an upper surface thereof in the longitudinaldirection.

Both the first flooring material 100 and the second flooring material400 are made of the synthetic wood, and have the grooves 110 in commonso that they can be constructed naturally.

At this time, each of the first flooring material 100 and the secondflooring material 400 is formed with the joint grooves 130 on both sidesthereof in the longitudinal direction, so that the flooring materialsneighboring in a width direction can be joined.

The first flooring material 100 may be made of a synthetic woodcontaining 20 to 50 parts by weight of a synthetic resin based on 100parts by weight of wood flour, and the second flooring material 400 mayalso be made of the synthetic wood containing the wood flour and thesynthetic resin as in the first flooring material.

Examples of the synthetic resin used in the first flooring material 100and the like may include polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE),polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate(PET), poly lactic acid (PLA), etc.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show another example of a flooring material which can beused together with the flooring material of FIG. 1. FIG. 7 is aperspective view of a flooring material having an embossed patternformed in a longitudinal direction, and FIG. 8 is a front view of theflooring material of FIG. 7.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, the flooring material 700 is formed with anembossed pattern alone.

The flooring material 700 of FIG. 7 (hereinafter, referred to as a thirdflooring material) is formed with an embossed pattern 120 alone and thushas inferior nonslip characteristics to the first flooring material 100of FIG. 1. However, the third flooring material 700 also exhibitsnonslip characteristics through the embossed pattern 120. Thus, thethird flooring material 700 made of synthetic wood can also beharmoniously joined together with the first flooring material 100without difference in texture.

FIG. 9 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring in which afirst flooring material and a third flooring material are alternatelyarranged.

Referring to FIG. 9, the first flooring material 100 and the secondflooring material 400 can be used together.

The first flooring material 100 is made of synthetic wood and formedwith grooves 110 on an upper surface thereof in a longitudinaldirection. An embossed pattern 120 is formed between the grooves 110.

The third flooring material 700 is made of synthetic wood as in thefirst flooring material. However, the third flooring material 700 isformed with the embossed pattern 120 alone on an upper surface thereofin the longitudinal direction.

Both the first flooring material 100 and the third flooring material 700are made of the synthetic wood, and have the embossed pattern 120 incommon so that they can be naturally used for construction of flooring.

Such construction may be achieved by the same method as combinationconstruction of the flowing using the first flooring material 100 andthe second flooring material 400, as shown in FIG. 6.

For combination construction, each of the first flooring material 100and the third flooring material 700 is formed with joint grooves 130 onboth sides thereof in the longitudinal direction such that the flooringmaterials neighboring in a width direction are joined to each other viathe joint grooves.

Also, the first flooring material 100 may be made of synthetic woodcontaining 20 to 50 parts by weight of a synthetic resin, such aspolypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC),polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), poly lactic acid(PLA), etc., based on 100 parts by weight of wood flour, and the thirdflooring material 700 may also be made of such synthetic wood.

FIG. 10 illustrates one example of synthetic wood flooring in which afirst flooring material, a second flooring material and a third flooringmaterial are alternately arranged.

As shown in FIG. 10, the first flooring material formed with bothgrooves and an embossed pattern in the longitudinal direction thereof,the second flooring material formed with grooves in the longitudinaldirection thereof, and the third flooring material formed with anembossed pattern in the longitudinal direction thereof are made of thesame synthetic wood, and they can be harmoniously joined withoutdifference in texture through the grooves provided in common between thefirst flooring material and the second flooring material, and theembossed pattern provided in common between the first flooring materialand the third flooring material.

Each of the flooring materials 100, 400, 700 is formed with jointgrooves on both sides thereof in the longitudinal direction such thatthat the flooring materials neighboring in a width direction are joinedto each other via the joint grooves.

As described above, the flooring material having excellent nonslipcharacteristics according to the embodiments of the present invention ismade of synthetic wood, and improves nonslip characteristics through thegrooves and the embossed pattern formed between the grooves. Further,the flooring material having grooves alone and the flooring materialhaving an embossed pattern alone may be used together in construction offlooring which has improved nonslip characteristics.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to someembodiments in conjunction with the drawings, it should be understoodthat these embodiments are given by way of illustration only and do notlimit the scope of the invention, and that various modifications,variations, and alterations can be made by a person having ordinaryknowledge in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be limited onlyby the accompanying claims and equivalents thereof.

1. A flooring material having excellent nonslip characteristics, theflooring material being made of synthetic wood and comprising grooves onan upper surface thereof in a longitudinal direction and an embossedpattern between the grooves.
 2. The flooring material of claim 1,wherein the flooring material comprises joint grooves on both sidesthereof in the longitudinal direction.
 3. The flooring material of claim1, wherein the flooring material comprises 20 to 50 parts by weight of asynthetic resin based on 100 parts by weight of wood flour.
 4. Theflooring material of claim 3, wherein the synthetic resin is selectedfrom among polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride(PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polylactic acid (PLA).
 5. The flooring material of claim 1, wherein theembossed pattern corresponds to a pattern on natural wood.
 6. Syntheticwood flooring comprising: a first flooring material made of syntheticwood and comprising grooves on an upper surface of the first flooringmaterial in a longitudinal direction thereof and an embossed patternbetween the grooves; and a second flooring material made of syntheticwood and comprising grooves on an upper surface of the second flooringmaterial in a longitudinal direction thereof, the first flooringmaterial and the second flooring material being alternately arranged,each of the first and second flooring materials comprising joint grooveson both sides thereof in the longitudinal direction such that theflooring materials neighboring in a width direction are joined to eachother via the joint grooves.
 7. The synthetic wood flooring of claim 6,wherein the first flooring material comprises 20 to 50 parts by weightof a synthetic resin based on 100 parts by weight of wood flour.
 8. Thesynthetic wood flooring of claim 7, wherein the synthetic resin isselected from among polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polyvinylchloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET),poly lactic acid (PLA).
 9. The synthetic wood flooring of claim 7,wherein the second flooring material comprises 20 to 50 parts by weightof a synthetic resin based on 100 parts by weight of wood flour.
 10. Thesynthetic wood flooring of claim 7, wherein the embossed patterncorresponds to a pattern of natural wood.
 11. Synthetic wood flooringcomprising: a first flooring material comprising grooves on an uppersurface of the first flooring material in a longitudinal directionthereof and a first embossed pattern between the grooves; and a thirdflooring material comprising a second embossed pattern on an uppersurface of the third flooring material in a longitudinal directionthereof, the first flooring material and the third flooring materialbeing alternately arranged, each of the first and third flooringmaterials comprising joint grooves on both sides thereof in thelongitudinal direction such that the flooring materials neighboring in awidth direction are joined to each other via the joint grooves.
 12. Theflooring material of claim 11, further comprising: a second flooringmaterial comprising grooves on an upper surface of the second flooringmaterial in a longitudinal direction thereof, the first flooringmaterial, the second flooring material and the third flooring materialbeing alternately arranged, each of the first flooring material, thesecond flooring material and the third flooring material comprisingjoint grooves on both sides thereof in the longitudinal direction suchthat the flooring materials neighboring in a width direction are joinedto each other via the joint grooves.
 13. The synthetic wood flooring ofclaim 11, wherein the first flooring material comprises 20 to 50 partsby weight of a synthetic resin based on 100 parts by weight of woodflour.
 14. The synthetic wood flooring of claim 13, wherein thesynthetic resin is selected from among polypropylene (PP), polyethylene(PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethyleneterephthalate (PET), poly lactic acid (PLA).
 15. The synthetic woodflooring of claim 13, wherein the first embossed pattern corresponds toa pattern of natural wood.
 16. The synthetic wood flooring of claim 13,wherein the third flooring material comprises 20 to 50 parts by weightof a synthetic resin based on 100 parts by weight of wood flour.
 17. Thesynthetic wood flooring of claim 16, wherein the second embossed patterncorresponds to a pattern of natural wood.